Streamline Apps to Simplify Your Business

Have you set any resolutions for 2015 yet? Many women are goal-oriented and in a constant state of self-improvement, in both their personal and professional lives. You may have thoughts of increased sales, better customer retention or a myriad of things, but if you have room for one more, might I suggest 2015 be the year you strive to simplify your business?

I meet women business owners on an ongoing basis and in talking with them about the tools they use to run their businesses, I’ve found one common thread.

No matter the type or size of business, or the tools used, every owner I’ve talked to uses a mix of apps that are either the wrong fit, not connected to each other, or both. This is counter-productive, but understandable. While apps and tools should be viewed as a cohesive whole, in most cases, they are added piecemeal, and as such, businesses end up experiencing redundancies and gaps.

If you’re ready to make a resolution to simplify your business by streamlining your tools and apps, let’s dive in!

Check for Overlapping Tools

Because business apps are often adopted one at a time, you probably have some that aren’t often used, don’t support your business goals, or overlap with each other. Make a list of apps you use and identify the redundancies. Make a goal not to have any two apps that do the same thing. Instead of using half the features of two apps, determine if there’s one app that does both jobs, and get rid of the redundant tool. This not only helps you keep your data in fewer place, but it will also simplify your work.

Let Apps Work Together

Contact the publishers of the remaining apps to determine if any of them connect to each other, then get instructions for setting up the connections between these tools. Don’t be dissuaded by the time or skills required to do so. The one-time investment could pay for itself again and again in saved time later.

The new year provides an opportunity for a fresh start and is a great time to place more of your attention on finding opportunities and servicing customers. Don’t let the wrong apps rob time that could be spent growing your business! Taking the time to simplify your business tools and taking advantage of apps that work together will lead to time-savings later, allowing you to focus more on your business.

By Connie Certusi

Connie Certusi is Executive Vice President and General Manager of Small Business Solutions at Sage North America.

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